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by SaraJaye



Series: 30 Kisses [1]
Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Childhood Friends, Dysfunctional Family, Families of Choice, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Garon is sort of a decent dad here, Hurt/Comfort, Love Confessions, M/M, Mentioned eye trauma, Music, Niles's filthy mouth, Running Away, retro technology
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-20
Updated: 2016-10-20
Packaged: 2018-08-23 12:56:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8328781
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaraJaye/pseuds/SaraJaye
Summary: It's raining when Niles comes to Leo's house that night. He has a suitcase.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Basically, Niles and Leo's backstory translated to modern times with family bullshit thrown in. Because even if Niles's parents stuck around I can't see them being that good. Sorry, Niles.

They've been best friends since they were eight years old, when Leo rescued him from the police. Niles was hanging out with some bad kids, Leo and his father were coming back from the library, and Leo pretended Niles had been with him the whole time instead of robbing the nearby Apple store. After that, Niles became a permanent fixture in their lives, spending more time at the Krackenburg home than his own.

Leo found out why quickly enough. Niles's father had walked out four years ago, his mother was an angry, tired woman, their shack was disgusting and they barely had enough money to make the rent each month. Who could blame a person for wanting to spend as little time away from there as he could?

Niles wears an eyepatch, not to look cool but to cover a stab wound. He was six when he tried to steal food for himself and his mother, the shopkeeper got angry when he couldn't pay and stabbed him. Luckily, a cashier saw the whole thing and called the cops.

"It's no big deal," Niles always says, but Leo has never seen him without the patch, even while showering in gym class.

Niles has lived off of canned or frozen meals, but his favorite food quickly becomes stuffed cabbage after Leo brings in some left over from last night's dinner and shares it with him. Niles secretly learns to cook from Xander's girlfriend so he can make tomato soup to bring to Leo when he's home with a cold.

Niles's family is so poor he can barely afford his own clothes and food, let alone the game systems and gadgets their friends have aside from the tablet Leo gave him one Christmas. He's the only person aside from Father whom Leo knows who still uses an old CD and cassette player or a portable Walkman, and quite proudly.

"Anyone can carry those tiny things, but this has an old-style charm to it. Beat-up speakers really make the music pop, you know?"

He doesn't like the flip phone he's stuck with nearly as much, but it does what it's supposed to.

Camilla teases that the two practically live in each other's pockets. Odin jokingly refers to them as "lovebirds". Their home economics teacher partners them for the egg-sitting assignment in eighth grade.

Leo's embarrassed, but never gives it a second thought. This is how it's always been, it's comfortable, he wouldn't change it for anything.

 

They're fifteen when things come to a head. One night, a game of chess between Leo and Elise is interrupted when Niles comes to the door. It's raining, and Niles has a suitcase.

"Got some room for a homeless bum?"

Ten minutes later Niles is bundled up in some old pajamas of Xander's, sipping leftover soup in front of the fireplace with a blanket draped over his shoulders. Father's working late, but none of them worry about him finding Niles here when he gets home. He's here enough that Father barely bats an eyelash anymore.

"It's no big deal," Niles says when Elise looks at him with concerned eyes and Camilla puts a hand on his shoulder. "Mom and I haven't gotten along for years. It's better this way."

"So what exactly happened?" Xander asks. "Did you leave on your own, or..."

"Does it matter?" Niles's tone is sharp, and Xander closes his eyes in understanding. Camilla strokes his damp hair and Elise pats his arm, Niles making a small appreciative noise. Leo's sure he'll hear the whole story later when they're alone, so he lets Niles finish eating while he brings Niles's suitcase, a blanket and pillow to his room.

Father isn't always the warmest person. He can be stern, expects the world from his children, and the less said about his tangled romantic life the better. He's made Elise cry with his scoldings, grounds anyone for a week who brings home grades lower than a B. Sometimes the family goes entire weeks without having dinner together because he's so busy with work, and his temper is enough to keep them quiet anytime he so much as looks like he's in a bad mood.

But he's never made Leo or any of his siblings feel like they had to get away from him.

They're luckier than Leo realizes.

 

Niles still won't talk about the situation at home when they're alone. He's more interested in unpacking his things. He brought his music player, a bunch of CDs and tapes. Various bands from their era and eras before, mostly a lot of 90s stuff.

"Grunge should really make a comeback," he says as he sorts through his discs. "I mean, I know Kobain's deal kinda fucked things up, but it was a good sound. Guitars, anger, pissing off parents, dirty flannel shirts."

"There were some good songs, yes." Leo sits down beside him, a hand on his shoulder. "So-"

"Don't get me wrong, I'm not some dinosaur all against today's music! We got some good stuff, even Gaga's pretty cool once she eats her way into your brain. The Killers, Cage The Elephant, they're all-"

"Niles." Leo squeezes his shoulder, to stem the words. "What happened between you and your mother? Please, tell me." Niles's body tenses under his touch, and he takes a deep breath, swallows and refuses to turn to him.

"We fought. Just like we always do, but this time I've had enough." His tone's bitter, and Leo shifts closer, his hand moving in slow circles on Niles's shoulder.

"Oh."

"Kept saying I was trash, just like her, I never did anything right, I'm no better than Dad," Niles goes on. "I called her a bitch, said she should've just kept her legs shut if she didn't want a kid..." His voice shakes. "We just kept yelling until I started packing, I don't remember whose idea it was for me to get the hell out."

"Oh, Niles..."

"Don't." He tenses again, Leo sees his hand curling into a fist. "Just...just don't. I'm just glad to be away from her." But Leo knows Niles too well, he still won't look at him and his shoulders shake. He's close to crying, and all Leo can do is hold him from behind.

No words pass between them for a good while. Finally, Niles collects himself as best as he can and gestures towards his music collection.

"I feel like listening to something. Pick your poison." He offers a crooked grin, and Leo smiles a little. Niles is far from over it, but if he wants to push it aside for now he won't object.

"Got that mix tape from the field trip to the museum last year?"

"Sure do." Niles flips open the case, pops the tape in and mashes play. He never rewinds his tapes, so it starts in the middle of "Mr. Bright Side" by The Killers. "Ah, yes, the old _I'm jerking off to some guy fucking my ex and whining about it_ anthem! Always a classic." Leo can't help chuckling, at this point he barely bats an eyelash at Niles's filthy mouth. In private, at least.

"That's a unique interpretation. Though personally, I question the artistic choice to repeat the same verse and chorus for one whole song."

They sit back on Leo's bed and listen to song after song. Niles seems to calm down as he leans against Leo's side, head on his shoulder as Leo instinctively takes his hand and squeezes. It's as regular as breathing for the two of them, since the first time Niles slept over and had a nightmare and only Leo holding his hand could help him go back to sleep. Niles has always been a physical person; holding hands, an arm slung around Leo's shoulders, leaning against him to sleep on bus rides to and from field trips, constant bear hugs. Leo's used to it, and has recently come to find it comforting. Familiar.

"Hey, Leo?"

"Hmm?"

"You're the best person I've ever known," Niles murmurs sleepily. "I mean, you saved me from the cops, you're always doing stuff for me, being here's more like home than my old house was."

"I'm glad, Niles." Leo smiles a little. "We're best friends. I couldn't do anything less."

"You're more."

"Pardon?" Niles nuzzles his shoulder, his breath hot against Leo's neck, and Leo can't help the heat that creeps into his cheeks. "Niles, what..."

"I love you, Leo." He nestles closer, his arm locking tightly around Leo's waist, and Leo sighs. Somehow he can't find it in him to be as blindsided as he should be at this confession, but it's hardly a small thing.

"I'm not sure this is the best time for you to come to that realization, Niles," he says. "You're pretty emotional right now."

"Nope." Niles grins. "Knew it way before this!"

He pulls Leo down for a kiss before Leo can say anything else, and rather than the entire world as he knows it changing entirely, it feels like something's slid into place and clicked.

_Maybe I did, too._

The music goes on and on, the tunes beginning to run together as the night goes on and they get more and more tired. Niles falls asleep on his shoulder and Leo can't help but brush a kiss to his forehead before he gets them settled under the covers.

It's warm tonight, despite the rain.


End file.
